Motion fails; Halloween on

October 30, 2012

Planned organized Halloween activities that involve closing down Front Street in Lahaina on Wednesday will go on as scheduled with the state Intermediate Court of Appeals' denial Monday of a motion by a Kula man to cancel the festivities.

The court denied the motion by Richard Dancil, who asked that Halloween activities be canceled until an appeal of a 2011 case against the events was heard. The motion was filed Wednesday against Maui County Mayor Alan Arakawa, several of his departments and the Lahaina TownAction Committee, all of which are assisting or organizing the Halloween events.

In his motion, Dancil said the event would "irreparably harm" him and "is in contravention to public policy regarding Native Hawaiian cultural and historic protection, preservation and development and Native Hawaiian rights in the State of Hawaii," among other issues.

Article Photos

Kalama Intermediate School chorus member Samantha Petterson lets out a perfectly pitched scream as Chris Quipolta pretends to hack her leg off Saturday during the school’s Fright Night fundraiser for the Kalama music programs. The scary haunted house was one of two at the school’s annual Halloween bash, with a tamer version provided for younger children.The Maui News / MATTHEW THAYER photo

The original lawsuit filed last year by Dancil and Na Makua O'Maui, a Native Hawaiian organization, said that staging a large, drunken street party in Lahaina, a culturally sacred and historic site, constituted a violation of Native Hawaiian rights.

Last year, a 2nd Circuit judge dismissed a temporary restraining order to stop the event, saying the plaintiffs did not have legal standing to file a lawsuit.

Dancil's court action did not seek a stay of the annual keiki costume parade in Lahaina.